The Odd Truth, Oct. 15, 2002
The Odd Truth is a collection of strange but factual news stories from around the world compiled by CBSNews.com's Brian Bernbaum. A new collection of stories is published each weekday. On weekends, you can read a week's worth of The Odd Truth.
Cat In The Hat Gets Sacked
POMONA, Calif. — A pair of glasses and a key, an anvil and a tee. Golf ball and all, they were found near a mall. But some were covered with graffiti — what gall.
The giant custom-designed props stolen Friday from the movie set of Dr. Seuss' "The Cat in the Hat" were found abandoned in a field not far from the set, authorities said Monday. No arrests have been made.
The $55,000 worth of plastic foam props, some of which had been broken, were discovered Sunday.
"There's some mischief involved," Rich Clark, assistant movie location manager, told KCAL-TV in Los Angeles.
The items taken were an 8-foot-long pair of dark blue glasses, a yellow 4-foot-long door key, a black 6-foot by 4-foot by 8-foot anvil with hammer, a 4-foot golf tee and a blue golf ball 7 feet in diameter that weighs more than 200 pounds. The golf ball was covered with graffiti, which may offer clues that lead to the thieves, police said.
The movie is to start filming next week. It stars Mike Myers and is expected to be released next year. The thefts were not expected to delay production. (AP)
Bank Robbing Retiree
BAY MINETTE, Ala. - It's not exactly an IRA, more like a felony retirement account. Thomas Jacob Reinman figured he had a pretty good idea for his retirement, rob banks. The 67-year-old Reinman reasoned at the very worst, he would be living his final years in a clean federal prison with free food and medicine, and no rent to pay. Now, he's been sentenced to eight years in prison, for an Alabama bank robbery last December. He's also awaiting sentencing for a Georgia robbery. But there could be a catch in his prison pension plan. Reinman says he doesn't like to stay in any one place too long. But it's going to be years before he can be nomad again. (AP)
Cock-A-Doodle-Don't
PARKLAND, Fla. — A couple with a barnyard collection of peacocks, roosters and hens has received a wake-up call from neighbors who said they are tired of pre-dawn, ear-piercing screeches.
County Judge Louis Schiff fined Leo and Marie Gosser $500 after the couple's neighbor, Joe Venuto, called police last April when the Gossers' rooster was loudly crowing before dawn.
Officers cited the Gossers for violating Parkland's noise ordinance, which prohibits disturbing animal noises.
Venuto's call was not the first for the couple, whose neighbors have complained for years to the city about the birds' screeches, foul droppings and destructive behavior.
"The police visit them very, very often," City Manager Harry Mertz said last week.
But despite the complaints, the couple's five peacocks, two roosters and six hens will be aloud to stay.
Parkland City Commission recently rewrote its noise law to make the Gossers' neighborhood of half-million-dollar homes exempt from the law's provision banning loud animals. (AP)
Risky Business
READING, Pa. — David R. Brubaker built up armies, conquered countries and vanquished opponents to become a world champion — at a board game.
Brubaker, 55, of Lititz, Pa., took the crown in the 14th Annual International RISK Tournament, held in Reading on Friday, Saturday and Sunday.
The tournament in the military strategy board game is officially sanctioned by Parker Brothers, the makers of RISK. About 100 players attended from across the country, said tournament director Steve Pasco.
Brubaker, an agricultural writer and consultant, won a $500 prize, a trophy and other smaller prizes.
His strategy, he said, was to build up armies quietly, while other players fought among themselves.
"I'd say the game is 60 percent skill and 40 percent luck," said Brubaker. He has been playing for years and taught his daughter, Adriane Brubaker, 28, who entered with him.
"I was wiped out in the first round," she said. (AP)
Making Statistics Work For You
NEW BERLIN, Wis. — Many New Berlin residents were left scratching their heads when they found out they were living in the second-richest city in the state.
The latest U.S. Census Bureau figures put the median income in the Waukesha County community at $152,338, right behind River Hills at $161,292.
"I knew it didn't make sense. But I thought, is that why we have so many banks in this city?" joked New Berlin Mayor Ted Wysocki.
He was right to be suspicious.
An error was caused when a two-household, five-person tract wasn't incorporated into the larger census tract, thereby throwing off the calculations, said Dan Flynn, a spokesman for the U.S. Census Bureau.
The 2,326 households of the city actually have a median income of $88,805, according to the bureau's corrected numbers.
Some residents were alarmed at the — temporary — news that they were among the wealthiest in the state, calling the mayor's office with questions, Wysocki said.
They were "expressing concerns about the fact that they didn't have that kind of wealth and asking, 'Where was that wealth?' and 'Where are we hiding it?"' he said. (AP)
Shocking End To Squirrel Awareness Week
KENNEWICK, Wash. — If Kennewick residents forgot about National Squirrel Awareness Week, one critter made sure they remembered.
About 1,700 customers lost electricity for about an hour Thursday because a squirrel got entangled in power equipment, causing a short circuit, said Karen Miller, a spokeswoman for the Benton County Public Utility District.
She said the squirrel was probably seeking heat.
Squirrels — singled out for recognition in the second week of October — are the utility's leading cause of outages, despite shields, squawking devices that that mimic calls of predators and other efforts. (AP)